Industrial
Fiber Optics and Fiber Optic Polishing Machiner
In the fields of engineering and applied sciences fiber optics are a useful tool widely used for the transmission of data over long distances. Optical fibers are flexible, transparent fibers made of pure glass, also known as silica. As thin as a human hair, they act as a waveguide to transmit light between the two ends of the fiber. Fiber optics are preferred over metal wires because signals travel along them with less loss and are immune to electromagnetic interference. Optical fiber typically consists of a transparent core surrounded by a transparent cladding material with a lower index of refraction. Light is kept in the core by total internal reflection. This causes the fiber to act as a waveguide.
Important to the efficiency of fiber optics is the quality of the fiber and the clarity at each end of the line. To achieve maximum effectiveness polishing of the ends of fiber optic cables is necessary. Over the last several years the technology for fiber optic polishing machines has made significant strides. A whole industry is now in place servicing the needs of companies that rely on fiber optics. Within the fiber optic polishing industry there are companies that actually do the work of polishing the fiber ends and there are companies that design and supply the fiber optic polishing machines required to do this work.
Designed for superior accuracy, optical fiber polishing machines are capable of the close tolerances and accurate repeatability required to consistently achieve superior production results when measuring factors such as apex offset, radius of curvature, fiber protrusion, back reflection and under-cut. Two important factors when selecting an optical fiber polishing machine are yield and throughput. Yield is an indicator of quality and repeatability. Throughput is a measure of productivity. The best of these machines allow the adjustment of platen force, speed, and time to satisfy exact specifications and precisely polish the ends of fiber optic connectors in a repeatable, reliable manner.
Along with highly advanced and programmable fiber optic polishing machines, specialized polishing materials have also been developed. These materials, often called abrasive film, are designed to provide ultra precise polishing results.
The end result of these highly advanced materials and machines is fiber optic fibers that perform better. This is an important consideration as fiber optics have become an indispensable work horse for communications systems world wide. source: articlesbase.com